Penn Vet News

Dr. Dean Richardson to Illuminate the Surgical Possibilities for Fracture Repair During AAEP’s 2019 Milne Lecture

Renowned equine orthopedic surgeon Dean Richardson, DVM, DACVS, will impress upon practitioners the surgical opportunities available for fracture repair and the associated importance of improving emergency management when he delivers the Frank J. Milne State-of-the-Art Lecture on Monday, Dec. 9 at the American Association of Equine Practitioners’ 65th Annual Convention in Denver, Colo.

New Bolton Center Welcomes Dr. Olivia Lorello to Equine Field Service Team

The University of Pennsylvania’s School of Veterinary Medicine (Penn Vet) is pleased to announce the addition of Olivia Lorello, VMD, PhD, to New Bolton Center’s Equine Field Service team.

What about regenerative medicine?

While stem cells are often considered essential for regenerative medicine, many of our fully developed somatic tissues already possess great capacity for regeneration.

A new drug target for chemically induced Parkinson’s disease

More than three decades ago, scientists discovered that a chemical found in a synthetic opioid, MPTP, induced the onset of a form of Parkinson’s disease. In a new study led by scientists from the School of Veterinary Medicine, researchers found that an enzyme in the body can metabolize compounds formed in the brain from alkaloids present in certain foods and tobacco into MPTP-like chemicals, triggering a neurodegenerative condition in mice.

Meaningful science, with students at the helm

Shoulder to shoulder at a lab bench in the basement of Penn’s Levin Building, Sonia Luthra, Johanna Fowler, and Tracy Tran compare small microscope slides they’re preparing.

Fowler, a rising junior at Haverford College, and Tran, a rising sophomore at Penn, observed Luthra’s technique, drawing a sample of canine blood carefully across the slide to make a thin smear. The high school senior at Friends Central School had a leg up on the undergrads: whereas their 10-week project was only just beginning, Luthra had already logged a month in the lab.

Novel model for studying intestinal parasite could advance vaccine development

The intestinal parasite Cryptosporidium, which causes a diarrheal disease, is very good at infecting humans. It’s the leading cause of waterborne disease from recreational waters in the United States. Globally, it’s a serious illness that can stunt the growth of, or even kill, infants and young children. And people with compromised immune systems, such as those with HIV/AIDS, are also highly susceptible. There is no vaccine and no effective treatment.

Better prognosticating for dogs with mammary tumors

Mammary tumors in dogs are the equivalent of breast cancers in people, and, as in the human disease, the canine tumors can manifest in a variety of ways. Some are diagnosed early, others late, and they can be either slow growing or aggressive.

New Bolton Center Developing Biological Passports, With Help From Pennsylvania Breeders

It sounds like something out of a science fiction movie: Rows of vials in a laboratory freezer, each containing detailed biological maps of what's going on inside the bodies of dozens of horses at specific moments in time. The frozen blood samples might one day hold the keys to making racing clean and drug-free, predicting injuries before they happen and helping veterinarians fight illness with new and powerful tools. Sound too good to be true? Researchers at Penn Vet's New Bolton Center hope it's not.

Exploring Equine Anatomy through an Artist’s Lens

While it is known that art imitates life, just how much can it influence our understanding of the world we live in, including our understanding of equine anatomy?

Penn Vet and the Wharton School Launching New Veterinary Entrepreneurship Program

Entrepreneurship, innovation and new business ventures – championed by schools of business and engineering across the country for the past two decades – have a new advocate. Veterinary schools. Yes, veterinary schools. And a new educational program is further evidence of the veterinary profession’s rising influence in a world characterized by globalization, population growth and rapid technological change.

A Link Between Mitochondrial Damage and Osteoporosis

New research from the School of Veterinary Medicine lays out a possible mechanism by which alcohol, cigarette smoke, and exposure to certain medications and toxins can weaken bone.

Some risk factors for osteoporosis such as being older and female or having a family history of the condition cannot be avoided. But others can, like smoking cigarettes, consuming alcohol, taking certain medications, or being exposed to environmental pollutants. But until now researchers haven’t gained a firm picture of how these exposures link up with bone loss.

Penn Vet’s Rebecka S. Hess Earns Prestigious Lindback Award

Rebecka S. Hess of the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Veterinary Medicine (Penn Vet) has earned the prestigious Christian R. and Mary F. Lindback Award for Distinguished Teaching. Dr. Hess is one of eight faculty members at Penn to receive the award this spring. 

Companion Animal Ryan Hospital Opens Its New 2.7 Million Emergency Room

A ribbon-cutting ceremony on April 16^th celebrated the opening of Ryan Hospital’s Richard Lichter Emergency Room at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Veterinary Medicine (Penn Vet). The project was generously funded by Richard Lichter, a member of Penn Vet’s Board of Overseers, and co-chair of The Power of Penn Vet Campaign. His gift was made in memory of his beloved Golden Retriever, Cosette.

Dr. Cynthia M. Otto Named Professor of Working Dog Sciences and Sports Medicine

The School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn Vet) has named Cynthia M. Otto, DVM, PhD, professor of Working Dog Sciences and Sports Medicine in the Department of Clinical Sciences and Advanced Medicine.

Meaghan Hogan Joins Penn Vet as Vice Dean, Institutional Advancement

Penn Vet has named Meaghan Hogan Vice Dean of Institutional Advancement. In this role, Hogan will be responsible for the overall conceptualization, planning and execution of a coordinated program of private source fund raising, constituent relations, and communications to support the long and short range goals of the School. She will lead The Power of Penn Vet Campaign to completion.

Dr. Gary Althouse Named Penn Vet’s Associate Dean of Sustainable Agriculture and Veterinary Practices

The University of Pennsylvania’s School of Veterinary Medicine (Penn Vet) announced the appointment of Gary Althouse, PhD, DVM, to associate dean of Sustainable Agricultural and Veterinary Practices. The appointment was effective April 1, 2019.

Inaugural Penn Vet Palpation Team Takes First at 2019 SAVMA Symposium Competition

The University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine (Penn Vet) students took home first-place honors during the 2019 Student American Veterinary Medical Association (SAVMA) Bovine Palpation Competition held March 9-11, 2019 at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia.

Unlocking the female bias in lupus

The autoimmune disease lupus, which can cause fatigue, a facial rash, and joint pain, strikes females far more often than males. Eight-five percent of people with lupus are female, and their second X chromosome seems partly to blame. According to a new study by Penn researchers, females with lupus don’t fully “silence” their second X chromosome in the immune system’s T cells, leading to abnormal expression of genes linked to that chromosome.

Johne’s Disease and the enteric microbiome

Paratuberculosis (or Johne’s Disease (JD)) is a chronic gastrointestinal disease of cattle caused by an infection with Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP). Infection with MAP results in inflammation of the intestinal lining, chronic diarrhea, weight loss, and is ultimately fatal. 

A bad bout of flu triggers ‘taste bud cells’ to grow in the lungs

Most people who weather an infection with influenza fully recover after a week or two. But for some, a severe case of the flu can actually reshape the architecture of their lungs and forever compromise their respiratory function.